Forward-looking radar signals alert via driver&#39;s phone

ABSTRACT

When an automobile&#39;s risk alerting forward looking radar senses a risk, or the GPS circuit with map indicates that a zone of high risk (such as certain intersections) is being entered, this system instructs the phone to play an alert sound into any on-going telephone conversation or suspend the call so that both parties know the driver needs to pay attention.

This application is a continuation of Ser. No. 15/094,672 filed Apr. 8,2016, which was a continuation of Ser. No. 13/975,246 filed Aug. 23,2013, which issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,311,544, and claims priority from61/693,079 filed Aug. 24, 2012 as well as from 61/728 filed Nov. 20,2012.

BACKGROUND

Auto insurance companies, auto rental companies, parents, and employerswould like to know how much a vehicle is driven, by whom, when, where,at what speed compared to the speed limit, carrying what load, andwhether any of the drivers take their eyes off the road for too long orengage in other risky driving behaviors. Parents and employers wouldlike reports on some of these items promptly upon occurrence. All fourwant assurance that the monitoring cannot be avoided by subterfuge.

Insurance companies and auto rental companies would offer lower rates ortrip-by-trip discounts where they are assured that technology is inplace to report the above information without possibility of avoidance.To be sure they qualify for lower rates, drivers would like immediatefeedback on actions that might preclude lower rates.

To reduce annoyance, avoid temptation, reduce risk, and show the vehicleowner and/or insurance company that they are a safe driver, some driverswould like their phones to automatically detect when they are drivingand, at those times, not ring with an incoming call unless the callerbelieves the call is important enough to be put though while the driveris driving, delay the ring of an incoming text until the vehicle isstopped, and display only a simple user interface that can be understoodwith quick glances. For drivers who do not own a cell phone, they wouldbe happy to receive lower insurance rates by accepting a system thatproves to the insurance company that they never hold a cell phone whiledriving,

SUMMARY

In the prior art, insurance companies incentivize customers to installin their autos cameras that take images of drivers while they aredriving and send the images to the insurance companies for human review.An improved device to do this and more, called a teleproctor, isdescribed. Detection and reporting of when eyes are not on the road forlonger than a glance is automated with image processing. The device alsoreports how much the car is driven, by whom, when, where, carrying whatload, at what speed compared to the speed limit, with what pattern ofhard breaking or hard cornering, whether the driver looked into theblind spot before changing lanes, and whether the driver allowed theirphone to enter a restricted state while driving. Reports of selectedevents can be sent to parents or employers promptly upon occurrence.Importantly, the removable retrofit device can detect if it is depoweredor removed from the vehicle and report this to the insurance company,rental company, parents, and employers.

Systems to provide the monitoring and reporting and screening of callscan be retrofit to existing vehicles at low cost. If there is sufficientdemand for the desired features, auto manufacturers will pre-install thehardware components to run software loaded by insurance companies,rental companies, parents, and employers.

The teleproctor is installed in the vehicle by the insured or built intoa new car. Installation for retrofit requires no skills. It is quick andeasy and gives immediate feedback whether successful or unsuccessful.The teleproctor merely needs to be adhered to the dashboard or thewindshield or the rear-view-mirror at a spot where the driver can see itand either a power wire is then plugged into a power source, such as aUSB port or a cigarette lighter receptacle, or the teleproctor includesa photovoltaic panel that charges its battery. To verify correct set up,the teleproctor sends a message via a radio network to a server and,when it receives an acknowledgment, beeps and flashes a green light.

The teleproctor collects data and wirelessly sends it to a centralrepository from which data is provided to the insurance company and/orthe car owner (rental company, parents, or employer). The teleproctorcan be set to give auditory reports and/or visual reports to the driverwhenever it reports to the insurance company that the driver wasexceeding the speed limit by more than a threshold or had eyes lookingaway from the road for too long while the car is moving or otherdetected behaviors, bad or good.

To report its data, the teleproctor can include wireless networkcommunications circuitry and a network account can be maintained fortransmission, like with the General Motors Onstar system. Alternatively,the teleproctor can send the data to pre-identified mobile phone viaBluetooth or WiFi when that phone is in the vehicle and the phone runsan app that forwards the data in SMS messages or via internet to thedata repository. A vehicle owner or insurance company can instruct therepository to forward selected data events immediately upon receipt.

The teleproctor provides data to answer these questions:

-   -   1. How many minutes per week is the car driven? on which risky        roads at what times?    -   2. In each minute, what was the vehicle speed and what is the        speed limit recorded in a map for that location?    -   3. In each minute, was it driven by the primary listed driver?        The number 2 listed driver? Number 3, etc.? A non-listed driver?    -   4. In which minutes and for how long each time did the driver        take his or her eyes off the road?    -   5. Did the driver brake hard? corner hard? look in the blind        spot before changing lanes?    -   6. Did the driver prevent their phone from automatically        entering a restricted mode while driving to reduce distractions?    -   7. For each trip, what was the load added to the vehicle?    -   8. Where is the car now, what are current images of the driver        or driver's seat, and what are current sounds?    -   9. Was the teleproctor removed from the vehicle or depowered?

Although software in the teleproctor is sophisticated, the hardware costof each teleproctor is low. Most of the hardware is already present inmany new vehicles, such as the GM Onstar system. The labor cost ofretrofit installation is insignificant because each vehicle owner can doit themselves without expert guidance or review. The eye directionrecognition software need not be so effective that it detects every toolong glance away from the road. It only needs to detect enough of thetoo long glances away that the driver is deterred from risky behaviorand there is no way the driver can consistently avoid detection.

Similarly, the most important part of the subterfuge detectionsystem—detecting removal of the retrofit teleproctor from thevehicle—requires no extra hardware, merely sophisticated software. Thiscomponent of the teleproctor can be a valuable component to add to anydevice with radio circuits where detection of removal is important.

DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

FIG. 1 shows a passenger vehicle with a teleproctor adhered to thewindshield.

FIG. 2 shows the circuit components of a teleproctor.

A. EYES AND FACIAL RECOGNITION

As shown in FIG. 1, the teleproctor 21 includes a camera 29 mounted on abase that includes electronic circuitry. The base need not be largerthan a small mobile phone. The base may be installed in new vehiclesbuilt into the dashboard. The camera housing includes an infra-red lightemitter that shines light not visible to humans toward the camera'sfield of view. The camera pixels detect both visible and infra-redlight.

For retrofit, as shown in FIG. 1, the base may be adhered to thewindshield 15 near the rear view mirror. Alternatively, it may beadhered to the dashboard or affixed to the mirror. For retrofit, it hasa wire that leads to a plug for a USB port (5 volts) or to a 12 voltoutlet (cigarette lighter socket) or it includes a solar photovoltaicpanel that charges a battery.

The teleproctor includes an image processor circuit 28 which isprogrammed to use image recognition to determine:

-   -   (a) Is the camera pointed at a face recognized as a pre-listed        driver?    -   (b) While the car is moving faster than a threshold, are the        eyes looking away from the road too long for a glance in another        direction?    -   (c) Did the head turn in a manner typical of checking the blind        spot?

The teleproctor 21 is programmed to learn the necessary recognitiondetails automatically after the teleproctor is installed. Facial imageand eye position recognition methods are well known. If the camera aimis changed so that it is not pointed at a human face and the car ismoving faster than a threshold, this fact is reported to the driver andto the owner and/or insurance company.

When the teleproctor is installed, a first listed driver sits in thedriver's seat and adjusts the camera angle to point at his or her eyes.The driver clicks a button, then looks straight ahead at the road as ifdriving. Three seconds after the button was clicked, the teleproctorcaptures an image to save data characteristics of this face and theseeyes as the first listed driver in correct driving position. The userinterface for the teleproctor can be via a mobile phone or laptop ortablet computer with a Bluetooth or WiFi or similar connection. Data torecognize each other pre-listed driver—number 2, number 3, etc.—is alsostored in this way the first time each of them drives. The teleproctorthen determines when it is looking at one of these drivers and canreport the driver's identity with little data transmitted.

If a face is not recognized when the vehicle is moving, the teleproctorreports this fact to the driver. The driver will be reported to theowner and/or insurance company as a not-pre-listed driver unless thesystem is commanded to store the new facial data as the image of a newlylisted driver. The image of each face used to train the system istransmitted to the owner and/or insurance company and stored in theirrecords for human review if and when necessary. If a person changestheir facial appearance, by changing their glasses or other features,they simply reprogram the teleproctor to store their new facial datacharacteristics. The teleproctor can keep two or more stored sets offacial data for each driver, such as with dark glasses or clear glassesor with a hat, etc.

Instead of storing facial recognition data in the teleproctor, theentire original images may be uploaded to a central server where thefacial recognition processing is done. Then, each time the vehiclestarts moving from a stop long enough to change drivers, an image istaken and uploaded for facial recognition.

In addition to a facial recognition system for determining who isdriving, the teleproctor includes components for eye directiondetermination, such as by identifying the pupils as contrasted againstwhites of the eyes and computing metrics of the pupils and the whites oneach side of the pupils. Any method for making these computations may beused. When the driver slightly changes position while the vehicle ismoving, the image processor may update the looking-at-the-road eyeposition data set for the driver by assuming that an eye position thatis steady while the car is moving with only short glances in otherdirections should be the basis for updating the data set.

When the eye direction data changes significantly from thelooking-at-the-road data set and then returns to the looking-at-the-roaddata set within a window of time, the system concludes that the eyeswere not looking at the road. If the dark pupils move to the side andthe eye metrics change a large amount, the head has turned, such as tocheck the blind spot.

For optimal processing for each of eye direction recognition and facialrecognition, the brightness of the captured data in the visible andinfra-red spectra may be adjusted independently. In addition, theintensity of emitted infra-red light may be adjusted independently foreach data set, giving a total of three possible brightness adjustmentsfor each of eye direction recognition and facial recognition purposes.For example, for eye direction determination when the driver is wearingdark glasses, the three brightnesses will be adjusted for optimaldistinction between the pupils and whites of the eyes as seen throughthe dark glasses. These brightness adjustments will typically be toobright for recognition of other facial features.

B. COLLECTING ADDITIONAL DATA

Location, Speed, and Speed Limit.

The teleproctor includes a determiner of location, speed, and speedlimit 27 which places into the data store 24 location data and speedrelative to the local speed limit. For a built-in teleproctor, thelocation, speed, and speed limit determiner 27 may get this data from aGPS with map circuit in the vehicle. In the retrofit teleproctor, thelocation, speed, and speed limit determiner 27 includes a GPS circuitand a stored digital map with speed limits for each location. The map isperiodically updated by download through the radio transceiver 30. Theteleproctor saves in the data store 24 the location, speed, and speedlimit data for reporting.

Acceleration.

The teleproctor includes at least two accelerometers. An accelerationdata processor can determine when lane changes are made and the imagerecognition processor can determine whether the driver first looked inthe blind spot. If the teleproctor is built into the vehicle, it can becoupled to data sources from the vehicle such as whether a turn signalwas activated before changing lanes and braking or turning data. Theacceleration data processor can determine when the driver causes hardbraking or cornering or speeding up. A summary of these determinationscan be uploaded to the data repository for review by the insurancecompany or owner.

Load.

Rental companies would like to know how much load their vehicle iscarrying on each trip as a gauge of wear. This information can be usedto set lower rates for people who carry light loads. Data from theaccelerometers on hard acceleration, hard cornering and hard braking isalso of interest to these companies because it increases tire wear.Parents and employers would like to know when the vehicle is being usedto carry extra passengers.

A load computation can be implemented with data showing powerconsumption provided by engine sensors. The built-in teleproctorreceives input from the vehicle engine computer. When the engine poweroutput is high, either the vehicle is going up a hill or it isaccelerating. Using the speed determining circuits, these two factorscan be computationally separated. By comparing the power output tochange in speed and factoring out any hill incline, the load the vehicleis carrying can be computed.

Another method to distinguish between climbing a hill and speeding upuses a direction of gravity+acceleration sensor. By comparing the outputof this sensor to change in speed, these two factors can be separated.

A more direct method for obtaining load data to report is to add straingauges to one or more suspension springs of the vehicle. It may be atiny strain gauge that directly senses strain in the metal of the springor it may be a distance sensor that senses the distance that the springis collapsed overall. Placing the gauge on only one spring, a rearspring, may be sufficiently accurate. A wire is run from the straingauge to the teleproctor or to the vehicle's computer which passes thedata on to the teleproctor. Of course, the teleproctor circuits may bebuilt into the vehicle's computer, with only the camera and othersensors being outside the vehicle computer.

C. REPORTING DRIVING BEHAVIOR TO THE DRIVER AND THE INSURANCE COMPANYAND/OR VEHICLE OWNER

Collected data for each trip is stored in a data store 24 shown inFIG. 1. Periodically, a radio control processor 23 commands the radiotransceiver 30 to send all the new data in the data store 24 to acentral repository 31 where it is repackaged and supplied to theinsurance companies and/or car owner. The transmission route may godirectly from a wireless network transmitter built into the teleproctoror the vehicle, in which case an account for the teleproctor ismaintained in the radio network, or it may pass via Bluetooth or WiFi toa phone in the car which acts as the first link in a radio network 32.

Any programmable “smart” phone can be programmed with an “app” toperform this function automatically without the phone owner taking anyaction other than leaving the phone and the app turned on whenever thephone is in the vehicle. The phone automatically detects the Bluetoothor WiFi signal from the teleproctor and connects to it. The teleproctorand phone app together then determine how often a data bundle isuploaded through the phone. For example, if the phone is in an area withpoor reception, the uploads may be delayed. This uploading of the datacan be programmed to happen the first occasion after a designated timeeach day that one of the designated phones with Bluetooth or WiFi is inthe car and the car is turned on, or other occasions. It can beprogrammed to happen immediately when certain events are detected orupon request from the system server 31.

The teleproctor can be programmed so that, when a specified number ofevents of not looking at the road for longer than a threshold occurwithin a specified window of time, a report is immediately sent via theradio network. Similarly, it can be programmed to immediately send areport when speed over the speed limit is maintained for longer than athreshold amount of time or any other event. If the teleproctor detectsextreme deceleration suggestive of an accident, or upon request from thesystem server, it can transmit images from the teleproctor and soundscollected by a microphone in the teleproctor or the phone for a periodof time.

So that the actions of the image processor and the radio controlprocessor can be updated, they are each controlled by programs stored ina rewritable program store 25 which can be rewritten by download throughthe radio network 32 and loaded into the program store 25.

The teleproctor can upload data showing:

-   -   1. the start and stop (longer than a threshold such as 4        minutes) times of all vehicle movement,    -   2. coordinates at each start or stop time,    -   3. coordinates at each turn relative to mapped roads to show        each leg of the route taken on each trip,    -   4. number of minutes in each leg,    -   5. number of minutes in each leg that the vehicle speed exceeded        the speed limit by more than a threshold,    -   6. any hard breaking or cornering or extreme deceleration,    -   7. amount of load (or estimated number of passengers) carried on        each trip,    -   8. number of times in each leg that the driver turned their eyes        away from the “looking at the road” direction for more than a        threshold duration and by how many tenths of seconds the        threshold was exceeded, both a maximum and an average, and    -   9. whether the driver prevented their phone from automatically        entering restricted mode controlled by the teleproctor.

The teleproctor can be set to play an auditory message to the driverthrough a speaker in the teleproctor or the driver's phone and/orpresent a visual message to the driver in a display for the driverwhenever speeding or eyes off the road or other events are reported tothe insurance company. With each message to the driver, the teleproctorcan tell the driver how much money the driver lost on insurance costsdue to speeding or eyes off the road, etc.

Data elements 1-7 above can be reported without adding a teleproctorcamera into the vehicle. Some vehicles and mobile telephones alreadyhave the required hardware. All that is required is software to bedownloaded into them to work as follows. A processor receives vehiclespeed from the vehicle, from either a speedometer or a GPS circuit inthe vehicle. The processor receives a speed limit from the GPS and astored map. The processor may be in the on-board vehicle electronicsassociated with the GPS or in a mobile telephone that communicates withthe on-board vehicle electronics via Bluetooth or WiFi. The phoneprovides acceleration data. The mobile telephone runs an app thatreceives the data and forwards it to the remote parties.

D. LEVELS OF RESTRICTED FUNCTIONALITY OF DRIVERS' PHONES WHILE DRIVING

As described above, each phone in the vehicle running an appropriate appcan automatically connect to the teleproctor for bi-directionalcommunication when the phone is in the vehicle. By facial recognition,the teleproctor can know which listed driver is driving the vehicle.With this information and prior cooperation by the usual drivers of thevehicle to load apps in their phones and list a phone identifier withthe teleproctor, the teleproctor can advise the driver's phone that itshould enter a restricted mode when the vehicle is moving. The usualdrivers' phones are each identified to the teleproctor when they firstconnect to it. Then, with the phone owner's acceptance by user input toload the app, the app will put the phone in a restricted mode wheneverthe teleproctor advises the phone that its owner is in the driver's seatand the vehicle is moving. If the driver's usual phone is not runningthe app to allow restriction, this suspicious circumstance can bereported to the vehicle owner or insurance company which can use thisinformation to set rates or rules.

An optimal form of functionality restriction might block all textmessage alerts or display and all reading, writing, or other userinteractions with a display while moving, but, to accommodateemergencies, it should not block all voice communications while moving.Examples of restrictions that can be implemented in the phone include:

-   -   1. Defer until the vehicle stops the playing of text ring        sounds;    -   2. Block displays to read text or to receive text input at the        keypad;    -   3. Block display of typical web pages which require focused        attention to glean information, allowing only simple displays;    -   4. For incoming calls, play a message to the caller that the        callee is driving and ask whether the call is important enough        to put through; the called phone would ring only if the caller        says “yes” or presses “1’.    -   5. When the vehicle takes certain actions, such as acceleration        or breaking or sharp turns, suspend voice calls and play an        explanatory tone or message to the remote party.    -   6. When the automobile's risk alerting forward looking radar        senses a risk or the GPS circuit with map indicates that a zone        of high risk (such as certain intersections) is being entered,        the teleproctor instructs the phone to play an alert sound into        any on-going telephone conversation or suspend the call so that        both parties know the driver needs to pay attention.

In restricted mode, all screen displays are so simple that a viewer canglean all available information with just a glance—no text beyond a fewwords to read, no large sets of items to choose from.

Level of attention required for driving can be approximated with theaccelerometers in the teleproctor. The teleproctor can advise thedriver's phone to enter a more restricted state when the vehicle isspeeding up or slowing down or turning or quickly changing lanes. If itis built into the vehicle, the teleproctor can receive inputs fromvarious vehicle sensors that suggest when more attention is required fordriving. At these times, the outgoing voice signal or the incoming voicesignal or both can be interrupted or suspended (and perhaps replacedwith a sound or recorded words) to reduce distraction for the driver andinform the other party to the conversation that the driver needs to payattention to driving at this time.

There can be multiple levels of restriction based on time of day orlocation on a map in memory based on GPS location or other factors. Arestriction might be to stop the handset speaker from working andrequire use of a headset speaker.

Conversations with a passenger in a car present less of a distractionthan telephone conversations because the remote conversant does not knowwhat else the driver is doing simultaneously and what the driver isseeing, while the passenger does. The passenger understands what ishappening when the driver pauses to concentrate on driving. Theconcentration demands for a telephone conversation can be reduced andmade more like the demands for conversation with a passenger byperiodically playing a beep or other signal to other party to remindthem that the person they are talking to is also driving.

The app running in the driver's phone can be programmed so that, when acaller calls while the phone is in a restricted state, before the phonerings, a message is played to the caller saying: “The person you arecalling is driving. If this call is important enough to interrupt thatperson while driving, press 1 or say yes.” The called phone would onlyring if the caller presses 1 or says yes. Otherwise, the call isrerouted to voice mail.

As described above, for independent adult drivers, restricting phonesthat are moving to block texting and display interactions but onlytemporarily block voice communications while also accelerating may beoptimal. However, for children, or children and certain employees, theparent or employer may prefer a greater level of restriction. In thissystem, the phone owner can have a password that allows greaterrestriction to be placed on the phone. Here are examples of possiblevoice call restrictions that may be preferred in these situations foroutgoing calls.

-   -   (1) Only calls to 911 or any other listed emergency number are        allowed.    -   (2) Phone numbers of family members are listed with the app and        only calls to these numbers are put through.    -   (3) Speed dial calls are allowed but not calls requiring        pressing more than 3 keys.    -   (4) Voice calls to other than listed emergency numbers are cut        off after 3 minutes.

Here are examples of possible restrictions for incoming calls.

-   -   (5) The likely source phone numbers of family members are listed        with the app and only calls from these numbers are put through.    -   (6) Voice calls from those listed family member numbers are cut        off after 3 minutes.

E. AVOIDING POSSIBLE SUBTERFUGE

For the system to be valuable to insurance companies and vehicle rentalcompanies, there must be no way to defeat it that would keep lowinsurance rates or rental rates in place when they should not be kept inplace. Parents and employers have similar concerns. Subterfuges thatmight be attempted include:

1. Unplug or remove the teleproctor for some vehicle trips. Theteleproctor includes a rechargeable battery that keeps it working for alength of time after it is depowered. In versions that do not includephotovoltaic charging of the battery, when power to the teleproctor islost, to determine whether the loss is due to a proper switch off ofvehicle power or improper unplugging or removal of a power fuse, theteleproctor sends a radio ping out the power wire and measures the radioecho signature by a process described below.

If the echo signature shows that power was lost due to vehicle powerswitch off, the teleproctor takes no action other than going into itsnormal sleep mode. If the echo signature shows that the teleproctor isunplugged or a fuse is removed, whether accidently or otherwise, itplays an auditory alert warning to plug it back in. If it is not soonplugged in to the same vehicle as determined by the echo signaturemethods described below, the teleproctor reports this fact to theinsurance company and/or owner.

To determine the cause of depowering, the teleproctor includes a circuitthat captures and records a radio-echo signature of the power source andits connections. Using its radio transmitter, which it has for Bluetoothor WiFi communication with the phone or for wide area data networkcommunication more directly to a server, the teleproctor emits a ping orseries of pings into the power wire. Using its radio receiver, theteleproctor records a signature of the echo to obtain a radio echosignature of the vehicle electronics.

The power wire echo will be different if the power source is a 12 voltto 5 volt converter such as for USB receptacles rather than a 12 voltsource such as from a cigarette lighter. It may also be affected byplugging other electronic devices into the vehicle. These changes can bedistinguished as not material changes because the echo will be vastlydifferent if the teleproctor is left unplugged or a fuse is removed orblown.

With known signature processing techniques, the echo data set may bereduced to a small but distinctive data set known as a signature hash.The algorithm for computing the hash is developed by collecting fullsignature data sets for many different vehicles and power supplies anddeveloping the algorithm to make the hash data set optimally small whilestill distinguishing between the plugged and unplugged or no fuseconditions in all cases, no matter what else may be plugged in.

Every time the retrofit teleproctor is powered, whether from turning onvehicle power or from unplugging and then plugging back in, a totalvehicle radio echo signature is obtained. For this, the radio echosignature is taken using the teleproctor's antenna for both broadcastand reception to obtain a signature of the entire vehicle, with a majorfactor being the shape of and relationship to all metal in the vehicleand a very minor factor being a change in the configuration of what'splugged into the vehicle's power and where. This allows users to unplugthe retrofit teleproctor, make changes to what's plugged in and where,and then plug in the retrofit teleproctor again without a problem. Ifthe total vehicle radio echo signature hash is the same as before, noalert is sent to the insurance company. For the built in teleproctor, nototal vehicle radio echo signature capability is required.

The algorithm for computing the hash for the vehicle radio echosignature is developed by collecting full signature data sets for manydifferent vehicles and developing the algorithm to make the hash dataset optimally small while still distinguishing between as many vehiclemodels as possible and never computing two different hashes for the samevehicle.

A driver might, while the vehicle power is off, unplug the retrofitteleproctor, leave it unplugged for some trips, and then plug it backinto the same vehicle. To prevent this subterfuge, the back-up batteryhas enough power to last several days and, while depowered in sleepmode, the teleproctor wakes up periodically, about every 3 hours, andqueries the GPS to determine its location. If the location is not thesame as where the teleproctor went to sleep, the insurance companyand/or owner is notified.

A driver might, while the vehicle power is off, unplug the retrofitteleproctor and remove it from the vehicle, leaving it in the samelocation as where the teleproctor went to sleep while the vehicle drivesaway. To prevent this subterfuge, the back-up battery has enough powerto last several days and, while depowered in sleep mode, the teleproctorwakes up periodically, about every 3 hours, and takes a total vehicleradio echo to determine the radio reflection characteristics of itssurroundings and computes a hash. If the computed hash is not the sameas for the vehicle in which the teleproctor was installed, the insurancecompany and/or owner is notified.

For new cars with a built in teleproctor, the total vehicle echosignature never needs to be taken because the teleproctor cannot easilybe removed. For retrofit teleproctors, the original total vehicle echosignature hashes are computed when the teleproctor is initially set up.

2. Point the camera at a manikin or mask or image. The teleproctor isprogrammed to report that the data is likely wrong if the eye directiondata does not change with glances away from the road as much as isminimally human.

3. Point the camera at a passenger. Unless the passenger is looking atthe road as much as the driver should be, this will not achieve thedriver's objective—the glances away from the road by a passenger will betoo long. If the driver points the camera at a passenger who is directedto stare intently at the road ahead, the face will not be recognized asa covered driver unless the driver attempted to defraud the insurancecompany by claiming that the face on which the system was trained is thedriver's face, but this would be easily caught by a human looking at thephoto of the face that was uploaded when the system was trained on thatface.

Also, if the camera is not moved from its location in front of thedriver, the angle of looking at the passenger will be too oblique andwill be automatically detectable by the image processor. If the camerais moved from its proper location, the echo signature of the totalvehicle will be detectably different.

4. Install a bootlegged teleproctor. It is necessary to include a methodfor the data compiling system 31 to authenticate each teleproctor.Otherwise, sociopathic entrepreneurs could make and sell bootleggedteleproctors that will give false and prettied-up data on use of thevehicle. The authentication method need not be strong. It only needs tobe strong enough to make it expensive to make and sell an unauthorizedteleproctor that will work adequately to go undetected more than abouthalf of the time.

Crypto-authenticating chips are well known. They are designed to receiveas input a first data string and, in response, output a second datastring. When both data strings are processed together with a secret key,the result will show the second data string to have been produced by thecrypto-authenticating chip or not. The second string cannot beinexpensively determined from knowing the first string without havingthe key. The contents of the authenticating chip cannot be read andduplicated because a fusible link was burned after manufacture.

The data compilation server 31 sends a first data string to theteleproctor mounted in the vehicle which replies with a second datastring from a crypto-authentication circuit 22 included in theteleproctor. If the data compilation server determines that the stringsdo not match with the key, the data is so annotated.

Each teleproctor sends to the data compilation server 31 an identifierfor use to determine which key should be used. The identifier may be theteleproctor's mobile number in the network or it may be a separateidentifier stored in and sent by the authentication circuit 22 (e.g., aserial number).

An alternative design for an authentication circuit uses a clock in theteleproctor that is synchronized with a clock in the central server toperiodically change a data string that it sends to the server. Each newdata string must match what is expected to achieve authentication. Otherauthentication circuits are known and may be used.

Although teleproctors require approved authentication circuits 22 to bebuilt in by licensed manufacturers to avoid bootlegging of devices thatreport false information, the authentic teleproctors can be sold freelythough all channels of trade and installed by anyone.

5. Load a bootlegged program into the teleproctor. The server thatchecks for the authentication chip is the only component that ispermitted to load an updated program into the teleproctor. Theauthentication chip is programmed to also check the credentials of theserver and insure that no other source can supply an updated program.

6. Block the driver's phone from connecting to the teleproctor. Theimage recognition system identifies who is driving. If that person'slisted phone is turned off or not running the app such that theteleproctor cannot connect to it, this is reported, with adverseconsequences for the driver.

7. Carry a non-listed phone as well as a listed phone. The imagerecognition system identifies who is driving. If that person's listedphone is in the vehicle and running the app, the phone will enter arestricted state as appropriate. If the driver uses a second, non-listedphone, it will not be in a restricted state, but the eye directionmonitoring system will still be watching the eyes and reporting too mucheyes-off-the-road behavior. Whenever the eyes are off the road too long,the system can upload an image of the driver's face and upper body forpossible human or automated review.

1. A system for use in a vehicle to reduce traffic accidents,comprising: (a) a forward-looking radar detector of objects in front ofthe vehicle; coupled to (b) a processor that, when an object thatpresents a risk of accident is detected by the radar detector, sends analert signal to a telephone of a driver of the vehicle.
 2. The system ofclaim 1 wherein, when the alert signal is received by the telephone ofthe driver, the telephone plays an alert sound.
 3. The system of claim 1wherein, when the alert signal is received by the telephone of thedriver, the telephone suspends on-going voice communications.
 4. Thesystem of claim 2 wherein the alert signal is sent to the telephone viaBluetooth radio communications.
 5. The system of claim 1 furthercomprising a speed determining circuit, coupled to the processor, whichspeed determining circuit provides input to the processor which theprocessor uses to assess risk.
 6. The system of claim 5 wherein thespeed determining circuit receives speed data input from one or moresensors in the vehicle that detect speed and report detected speed tothe system.
 7. The system of claim 1 further comprising a radiocommunications circuit coupled to the processor which radiocommunications circuit sends information to a remote server.
 8. Thesystem of claim 7 further comprising an authenticating circuit coupledto the radio communications circuit which authenticating circuitauthenticates the system via a radio network to a remote server coupledto the radio network.
 9. The system of claim 1 where the components areassembled into a device adapted for retrofit into a pre-existingautomobile.
 10. The system of claim 1 where the components are builtinto a new vehicle as the vehicle is constructed.
 11. The system ofclaim 1 further comprising a rechargeable battery power supply coupledto a solar cell that charges the battery.